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Effects of face shield on an emitter during a cough process: A large-eddy simulation study
Haiwen Ge1, Peng Zhao2, Sanghun Choi3
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA.
The Science of the Total Environment
|March 31, 2022
Summary
Face shields reduce front-facing cough droplet spread but increase rearward dispersion. Modifications to face shield design are crucial for effective pandemic protection, especially for shorter individuals.
Area of Science:
- Fluid Dynamics
- Aerosol Science
- Public Health Engineering
Background:
- Face shields are widely used personal protective equipment during pandemics.
- Understanding droplet dispersion from coughing is critical for infection control.
Purpose of the Study:
- To simulate cough jet dynamics and droplet dispersion using a face shield.
- To analyze the impact of face shields on airflow and droplet distribution.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of face shields in reducing transmission risk.
Main Methods:
- Three-dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation of a cough jet.
- Realistic manikin model with a simplified mouth cavity.
- Large Eddy Simulation (LES) for turbulence and Eulerian-Lagrangian approach for two-phase flow (droplets).
Main Results:
- Face shields create multiple vortices upon cough jet impingement, altering droplet trajectories.
- Droplets were observed to move backward and downward after impinging on the face shield.
- Minor face shield design changes significantly impact flow field and droplet distribution.
Conclusions:
- Face shields reduce risk in front but increase it behind the emitter.
- Risk remains high for shorter receivers; face shield design, clothing, and floor cleaning are critical.
- A conceptual model for droplet flux with face shields was proposed.
